A delegation of United Nations ambassadors was led by Israel’s UN Ambassador, Danny Danon, as they participated Thursday in the 31st annual March of the Living in Poland on Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day), before traveling to Israel during the week of Yom Ha’Atzma’ut (Israel’s Independence Day.)
The UN delegation was joined by senior U.S. officials, led by American Ambassador David Friedman, Chairman of the Jewish Agency, Isaac Herzog; and Chairman of the Yad Vashem Council, Rabbi Israel Lau.
Among the UN ambassadors were delegates from Africa, Asia, the Pacific, Latin America and Eastern Europe. Together, they marched from Auschwitz to Birkenau.
“There are still people, and even entire communities, who have learned nothing from the Holocaust,” said Ambassador Danon. “Threats to destroy the Jewish state alongside intensified anti-Semitism should serve as warning signs for all of humanity.
“The March of the Living is a critical part of Holocaust remembrance. It is our duty to ensure that the world never forgets the horrors our people endured and will always act decisively so that nothing like it will ever happen again.”
The diplomats participated in the mission at the invitation of The American Zionist Movement (AZM) and The International March of the Living (MOTL), which organized the delegation in cooperation with the Permanent Mission of Israel to the United Nations.
In Israel the UN ambassadors are scheduled for an extensive tour of the country to learn about the land, Jewish history and Zionism, receive briefings on current security challenges and participate in high-level discussions and meetings.
“It is important for Ambassadors from around the world to understand both the history of and contemporary life in Israel in order to be best informed on issues which come to their attention at the United Nations. A first-hand personal visit is essential to such understanding,” said Richard D. Heideman, President of The American Zionist Movement, who is accompanying the delegation.
“I recall being an NGO Delegate to the UN Conference on Women in Nairobi and the UN Conference on Racism in Durban, South Africa,” said Phyllis Greenberg Heideman, president of the International March of the Living. “Both were “hatefests” against Israel.”